Comics Workbook

An online magazine for comics makers

Posted in NewsTagged Chris Visions, Daily News, Kurt Ankeny, ron wimberly

Harrison

Posted on April 7, 2016April 8, 2016

Explore

02/15/2018

Comics WorkbookFebruary 14, 2018NewsSam Ombiri on Noel Freibert’s Old Ground! ————————————————————————————————— Sam Ombiri here: What’s so special about comics? If someone asked me that, I’d point directly to Old Ground by Noel Freibert. Among my vague, imaginary mental list of favorite comics right now, Old Ground is up there; seriously. Everything seems to be in place in the book, and for me it couldn’t be more perfect. This is a comic that can’t be described in a way that would do it justice, as lazy as I might sound in saying that. Some scenes cause me to laugh a certain kind of laughter. It’s kind of a nervous laughter, but not necessarily out of being too frightened or weirded out to respond “properly”. It feels like Noel draws the way he does so he can simultaneously restrict himself, and through that free himself to go to certain places with his comics that wouldn’t be accessible to him (or anyone else for that matter) otherwise. This might be what accounts of my nervous laughter – some of the gags presented perhaps lack of a point of reference. The comic is a real shock to the system because the drawings and the story are virtuosic. The comic is simultaneously cute, frightening, menacing, intensely dramatic, intensely goofy, and so on and so on. Somehow Noel made all these shifts register really well, and every moment resonates with the moment before, surprisingly harmoniously for such a chaotic book. He lingers in moments so that the events can properly register. He isn’t in any rush to show us his cooler-looking drawings. I say this because a lot of times comics fall flat for me in their refusal to be comics. The drawings might be labored over, but the sequence of events or images have no pulse whatsoever, so to speak. Not so with Old Ground, not by a long shot. When the comic is focused on the two people buried in the grave, it goes on and on because it needs to, and then as the comic progresses Noel uses this established rhythm of the two people in the grave, and plays with it. He doesn’t just play with it – he confronts it. This comic doesn’t feel like Noel did it at a distance, with vague suggestions that aren’t a part of him. At least that was the feeling I was getting from reading the book. Noel is committed to displaying this vague feeling he has and pursuing it to the end (or no end). That’s what makes it such a compelling read – and the results are evident there in the book. In the story, one of the corpses in the grave claims to be 5, and the other claims to be 8 (but I suppose if they’ve been able to talk for as many years as they’ve been buried, maybe they’re even older). As one of the corpses – called Silver Spoon – put it, the worms maybe have eaten Cliffie’s (the other corpse) memory. The way Silver Spoon says it seems to be alluding to this only happening to Cliffie. The age seems to be more connected with the age when they died than the length of time they’ve been thinking. Although at the end of the story even this is questionable. What would they be thinking about? How frogs were believed to be able to consume evil spirits, and how this means they can eat anything? They talk about how they’re dead and what that means to them. Silver Spoon suggests that Cliffie’s parents deserved to die in the fire in which they perished (for no reason whatsoever!) Meanwhile, we’re also entertained by two wacky people whose goal is to demolish the graveyard. One is called Renaldo and is a very likeable character. I felt bad with how he was kind of forced into this situation by his boss, who is such a hilarious character. The story at a certain point turns into Silver Spoon trying to convince Cliffie that Renaldo and his boss aren’t his parents. The interaction between the corpses reminded me of Jim Bored’s adventures in Powr Mastrs 3. The way the characters’ imaginations take shape, which is symbolically realized through each of the books’ creators’ efforts (Noel for Old Ground and CF for Powr Mastrs), are of the same nature. The pacing of it is based off of boredom, so it’s a good excuse for imagination to suddenly take vivid shapes. I mean, there’s also a good amount of differences, like how it’s a dialogue in Old Ground, as opposed to a monologue in Powr Mastrs, or how instead of someone who is still alive but forgetting, it’s two dead people remembering (albeit not with much luck). I guess Jim Bored is also about remembering, but I think what Noel was saying with the comic partly is: dead people are not only forgotten by others – they’re also forgotten by themselves. So their goal of remembering is quite different from what Jim Bored’s goal was (which seemed to be self preservation and survival). If you haven’t read Old Ground it’s probably in your best interest to do so. The ending of the story is an especially good one, with so many great moments leading up to it. The characters are excellent, and the sequences have done more than just simply blow me away; they’ve really astounded me. The lines Noel draws really bend to his mysterious whims. The drawings suggest they’re based off of simplicity, but it’s a trick. When I begin reading the comic I’m lured in and at the same time Noel is bent on driving me through this story, which has these sudden bursts of hyperkinetic movements. When motion is conveyed it’s a real marvel to read. – Sam Ombiri Read more about Old Ground (Koyama Press, 2017) HERE, and get a copy of the comic HERE. ————————————————————————————————— Collected from the thousands of pages of material that Frank has left scattered all over the digital landscape, these 4 PDF collections contain Frank’s best writing on comics and comics making from the past decade. Theory and process, reviews and discoveries, journeys both physical and spiritual. Check out the “Best of Frank Santoro” PDF collections, available HERE! ————————————————————————————————— Joanie and Jordie – 2-14-2018 – by Caleb Orecchio Share this page: [...]

03/14/2016

Juan FernándezMarch 14, 2016NewsJuan Fernandez here with lots of interesting bits and bobs from the comics world. There’s something here for everyone. Let’s jump right in. Here’s a juicy one for ya, Rachel Davies in conversation with Julie Doucet over at Rookie Mag! They talk about embracing the unknown and following creativity to new media. Good stuff. Doucet is an interdisciplinary artist that has historically been pigeon holed as solely a comics maker. They talk about all that and more. Read it here. You said you did printmaking in college but did you ever experiment with printmaking when you were younger than that? What did you work in as a teenager? Oh, I was drawing with a felt-tip pen all the time. Did you always see art as something you would do professionally? I guess so, yeah. At the time, there was a crisis in the ’80s so there were no jobs for anybody. You could go to school and be an artist and it wouldn’t make it any difference because you wouldn’t have a job anyway. Being an artist sounded like the right thing to do because I was drawing all the time and I had a talent for it. Robyn Chapman has launched a new crowdfunding campaign to fund the spring line of Paper Rocket Comics. Chapman is smart in how she uses kickstarter as a pre-order system to help defray the cost of production. She has run 7 successful funding campaigns for Paper Rocket so you can be sure she knows what she’s doing. She’s in it for life and it’s worth seeing how she’s does what she does. Learn more about the Kickstarter on their page! Whit Taylor is giving a talk tomorrow on Autobiography, Identity, and Self-Reflection in Comics Tuesday, March 15, 2016 7–9pm Join NYC-based, New Jersey-born cartoonist, editor, and comics writer, Whit Taylor as she talks about her work in the context of autobiography, identity, and self-reflection. She will present and discuss several of her comics, including The Anthropologists, a semi-autobiographical account of three strangers venturing into the Australian Outback together for a week of unexpected adventures, and her most recent work Ghost, a mind-expanding journey to remote and unanticipated landscapes, in a story of exploration, self-discovery, and healing. You can listen and be part of the conversation at the Interference Archive – 131 8th St, Brooklyn, New York 11215. More info over on facebook. Kendra Yee has posted a short new comic that reflects on windows and how we percieve others while securing privacy for ourselves. Great imagery that really breathes and colors that swim together well. – read Part 1 – read part 2 – 2d Cloud has announced the nitty gritty details of Mirror Mirror 2, the second edition of their flagship anthology. It’s going to feature new comics and drawings by: Lala Albert / Clive Barker / Heather Benjamin / Sean Christensen / Nicole Claveloux / Sean T. Collins / Al Columbia / Dame Darcy / Noel Freibert / Renee French / Meaghan Garvey / Julia Gfrörer / Simon Hanselmann / Hellen Jo / Hadrianus Junius / Aidan Koch / Laura Lannes / Céline Loup / Uno Moralez / Mou / Chloe Piene / Josh Simmons / Carol Swain From what they’ve announced, seems that the focus is going to be around horror / pornography / the Gothic / the abject, which should come as no surprise with Julia Gfrörer and Sean T. Collins at the helm. It’ll be out next winter, with some advanced comics floating around in the Fall. And for a little boost in assuring you that what you’re doing is important, how ’bout you reflect on Chuck Jones legacy? Zach over at Practice Positive takes a look at Chuck Jones and what it meant to master both craftsmanship and universality in art. Really useful ideas that can be put into practice by any and all comics makers. Read it here. The whole essence of good drawing—and of good thinking, perhaps—is to work a subject down to the simplest form possible and still have it believable for what it is meant to be. A heads up for you Chicagoans, The Chicago Alternative Comics Expo (CAKE) will be holding its 4th annual art auction fundraiser at 7:00 pm on Friday, April 8th, at the The Hideout Inn, located at 1354 W Wabansia Ave. The event will be hosted by intermedia artist Lyra Hill. The event will feature live and silent auctions of over 20 pieces of art by past special guests and exhibitors of CAKE, including Jaime and Gilbert Hernandez, Eleanor Davis, and Dash Shaw. The event will also feature live comics readings by local artists Samuel Nigrosh. Molly Colleen O’Connell, and Sam Nigrosh. More info here. [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/249959191″ params=”color=ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false” width=”100%” height=”166″ iframe=”true” /] Simon Moreton joined Robin McConnell over on Inkstuds to chat about his new book from Uncivilized Books, Plans That We Made. Simon has a really beautiful minimal style of story telling that works really nicely. Simon’s work can be found in his Smoo mini comics. If you’ve been sleeping on Simon Moreton, I suggest you dig into his work soon. It’s quiet, but extremely grounded work in the tradition of minimal autobiographical cartooning pioneered by John Porcellino. Well worth a listen! This Nicole Georges‘ Sagittarian Matters brings you a BETH DITTO MAILBAG TAKEOVER!!! Musician & fashion designer Beth Ditto & Nicole Georges answer questions & riff on self-deprecation, grace, gratitude, punk feminism, polyamory, and MORE. The self-deprecation riff alone is worth the listen! To close things off, I wanted to let you know that Archive.org has recently made David W Niven‘s incredible archive of early jazz available for download. Feast your ears, babies. 650 tapes · 1,000 hours · 1,378 WAV files · 637 GB · 691 JPEG scans of cassette liner cards & literature. Meticulously Collected, Compiled, and Narrated by David W. Niven, 1930-1993. Generously Donated by David W. Niven to the Foxborough High School Jazz Program, Stephen C. Massey, Director, 2010. Archived to CD-Quality Digital Audio by Kevin J. Powers, 2010-2011.An Early Jazz Recording Collection by David W. Niven over and out, Juan Fernandez Share this page: [...]

09/08/2016

Sally IngrahamSeptember 8, 2016NewsSally here today to unpack a fantastic week in the Comics Workbook community – we are celebrating the results of the Composition Competition, looking forward to even more new work with the announcement of the fall Correspondence Course, dancing with excitement over the amazing lineup of CW-hosted workshops at SPX, and eagerly anticipating unpacking the box of hot-off-the-press new books by Connor Willumsen…! ————————————————————————————————— I believe that people are still working on reading all the comics that were made for the Comics Workbook Composition Competition 2016 (the winning comics, by Cameron Nicholson, Shee Phon, and Cameron Arthur are pictured above)! With well over 100 entries, the competition inspired a phenomenal outpouring of talent and energy this year, from a diverse and international comics making community. This contest is utterly unique, with it’s focus on composition and the freedom that can be found in restriction, and folks world-wide respond to that in remarkable ways. Camerson Nicholson, who created the comic that won first place in the 2016 Comics Workbook Composition Competition, has been channeling that energy into loads of new projects, like the one above. That is exactly the momentum that the competition hopes to inspire in contestants – many of whom have never completed a comic before. Making a complete comic, releasing it into the world and hearing the world clap back, often inspires one to say “Again!” And so the circle turns. ————————————————————————————————— With that in mind, Frank Santoro has announced a new semester of his Correspondence Course for Comic Book Makers! “Applications are due by Sept 16 2016 – The course begins Sept 23rd 2016 The application is: 3 landscape drawings, 3 still life drawings, and 3 figure drawings. All done on blank 3 x 5 inch index cards. Draw in direct pen with no pencil underdrawing. Also send me any specific urls of comics work you have done. If you haven’t done comics before that is not a problem. You will never meet someone as enthusiastic about comics as me. I’m a good coach.” Full details are HERE. ————————————————————————————————— Small Press Expo 2016 is fast approaching, and the Comics Workbook team is getting into high gear with a huge two-day schedule of workshops during the show. We will be hanging out with Jeffery Brown, Carol Tyler, Charles Burns, Cameron Nicholson, and some of the best comics makers from Spain all weekend. Find all the details HERE – and sign up for the workshops HERE! ————————————————————————————————— There are only a few days left until Connor’s new book makes it’s appearance – we are literally waiting for the mailman on the porch everyday, crossing fingers that he’ll have the box with him…! This means you have only a few days left to take advantage of the incredible pre-order deal – check it out HERE. This book is going to look (and smell) amazing, (thanks to the skills of WestCan) and fans of Connor’s work will no doubt find Portraits an essential part of their collection. ————————————————————————————————— I’ll be back tomorrow with more news and good energy to close out this first week of September. Cheers – Sally Share this page: [...]

08/05/2016

Sally IngrahamAugust 5, 2016NewsFriday, and what a week! Sally here to sift through it with you: I’ve got Audra Stang’s new comic, a bit more time spent with Caitlin McGurk (and Lucy Caswell for good measure!), interviews and words of wisdom from Marjane Satrapi, Emma Watson, Mari Naomi, Yumi Sakugawa, Andrea Tsurumi, and me (in a more official capacity than my usual Friday ramblings…) 1…2…3…GO! ————————————————————————————————— Audra Stang spent a very productive 3 days at the Comics Workbook Rowhouse Residency in Pittsburgh, PA, in July, and now she is serializing the comic she made during that time (first page pictured above). See what she has shared so far HERE and look for updates every Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday in August! ————————————————————————————————— I (Sally Ingraham) got interrupted the other day while I was working at the Rowhouse, by Frank Santoro and a camera crew, and ended up talking about teaching comics, researching comics, and my ideas about “comics roller derby”. Part One is above – watch Part Two HERE. Expect MUCH MORE from the Comics Workbook Roller Derby league soon…! ————————————————————————————————— Columbus Alive profiled Caitlin McGurk yesterday, and although CW correspondent Harrison Prince mentioned it in our Thursday news post, I wanted to spend a little more time with her. I think McGurk is an incredibly rad lady, and she’s following the sort of path through comics and library science that I aspire to. As the piece states: “Caitlin McGurk was destined to work in the comics industry. There were telltale signs during her childhood on Long Island. She remembers obsessively collecting and organizing comic book cards and admiring the pictures in the “Stations of the Cross” while waiting in the communion line at her Catholic church. “That was probably my first experience with sequential art because there these beautiful stained glass or carved images with a little bit of text,” McGurk said. “I’d study the image and read the text a thousand times.” Following high school, McGurk put out her own mini comics and zines and interned at an auction house where she catalogued – and fell in love with – underground comix (small press or self-published comic books). She interviewed famous cartoonists like Chester Brown for her senior college thesis on memory and consciousness in the graphic novel, and went on to obtain a master’s degree in library and information science from Long Island University.” Erica Thompson via Columbus Alive Caitlin McGurk is now an associate curator at the Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum in Columbus, OH. There she is able to stay on target regarding one of her life goals – that is, making her own “…contribution to the world of comic scholarship…about celebrating the unsung history of women in comics.” One of McGurk’s recent pieces of comics scholarship was an in-depth look at the work of Etta Hulme (1923-2014), who was the chief editorial cartoonist for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram for 36 years. Caitlin McGurk writes: “During her long and industrious career, Etta provided a consistent voice in cartooning. Her path wasn’t always easy; she was one of the only women to be hired as a full-time newspaper cartoonist, and was frequently carped for her boldly liberal views in a conservative Texan town. Etta laughed off criticism and even threats; her endless wit and terrific determination are best illustrated by her daily cartoons.” – Caitlin McGurk via the Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum Blog You can see pictures of some of the Etta Hulme collection that the BICLM hosts HERE, and read more of what McGurk wrote about her! It’s no coincidence that the Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum employs incredible women like Caitlin McGurk – after all it was founded by the tremendous Lucy Shelton Caswell (pictured below during a recent interview – we’ll be keeping our ears peeled for it!) Here’s our fearless founder Lucy Shelton Caswell being interviewed today by WOSU about the life of Frank Higgs – Milton Caniff’s dear friend and inspiration for the Terry And The Pirates character “Dude Hennick” A photo posted by Billy Ireland Cartoon Library (@cartoonlibrary) on Aug 3, 2016 at 1:51pm PDT As Tom Spurgeon wrote in a 2014 interview with Caswell: “Caswell is an accomplished author about comics, and has done significant work in bringing cartoon art to bear in the teaching of history. My favorite comics-related moment of 2013 was the long, deserved moment of applause Caswell received during the Billy Ireland opening ceremony. The comics community owes her more than it can ever repay. She is a role-model for every non-creative to work in proximity to this great art form, and for everyone else besides.” – Tom Spurgeon via The Comics Reporter Spurgeon and Caswell dig deep into history and comics and the history of comics in the rest of the interview – check it out HERE. And keep Lucy Caswell on your radar – her work is nowhere near finished. ————————————————————————————————— There is an interesting interview over on Rookie with Yumi Sakugawa – Madeline Keyes-Levine asked her a series of questions and Yumi Sakugawa answered with “…magical, illustrated responses, featuring some cat friends, the pros of self-publishing (pictured above), and an exercise you can do to start meditating literally whenever you want.” Check out the whole thing HERE. ————————————————————————————————— Daniel Barron conducted an interview with Mari Naomi recently for Yay!LA Art and Culture Magazine, and things got intense. “Sometimes you need to cross the line to know where it is. That’s something I think about as I am seated for coffee with illustrator Mari Naomi. After an hour discussing her history and work I feel like I’ve said too much about myself, anxious to tiptoe back wherever the line is. Call it a testament to the honesty of her work, whose loose, confessional nature makes one desire to meet it in the middle.” – Daniel Barron Get to know them both, I guess, HERE. ————————————————————————————————— It really was a big week for women cartoonists, with at least two more items that we found for you. Andrea Tsurumi appeared on the Virtual Memories Show podcast with Gil Roth – “Rising comics star — don’t blame me, that’s what Publishers Weekly just called her — Andrea Tsurumi joins the show to talk about her new collection, Why Would You Do That? (Hic & Hoc Publications). We get into her off-kilter sense of humor and why I love it, why she chose that title, the most sadistic children’s book ever written and why she adapted it, the comics industry’s saving grace (it’s too small to fail), staged photos during the Civil War, the challenge of teaching comics, her attempt at a work/art/life balance, the comics, cartoons and picture books that influenced/warped her, why she left New York, the truth about cakes vs. pies, and more!” – Gil Roth Give it a listen HERE! Then of course there is the Emma Watson/Marjane Satrapi interview for Vogue that is making Harry Potter fans, at the very least, learn a thing or two about comics. And feminism. And Iran. It’s really quite good. “…I think it’s extremely important that we try to change our lives around ourselves. When I was 30 years old, I said, “I’m going to change this world,” and after 10 years, the world was changing me. I became a cynical person who did not believe in anything anymore. And so I said, “I am losing even myself,” and then decided “Okay, from now on I’m going to change myself, and if I change myself, I have changed a little bit of this world. I will try to be a better person.” I don’t always succeed in that because the nasty side of me is big, but I try . . . I try.” – Marjane Satrapi Read the rest HERE. ————————————————————————————————— Let’s keep up this pace, ladies! And the rest of you too of course. Don’t let the doldrums of summer get you. More comics news coming your way Monday – till then, cheers. – Sally Share this page: [...]

11/01/2016

Aaron CockleOctober 31, 2016NewsAaron here today with NY Comics & Picture-story Symposium events for this week; Wertz at the NYer; Drawing the Unspeakable; more Mould Map 6; ‘An Update on the Largest Prison Strike in US History, Now Ongoing’; Ankeny’s MICE Recapitulation ————————————————————————————————— There are three upcoming events at the NY Comic and Picture-story Symposium, in support of Illustration Week 2016: David Kunzle on Töpffer and Cham: the amateur and the professional The 168th meeting of the NY Comics & Picture-story Symposium will be held on Thursday, Nov. 3, 2016 at 7pm at Parsons School of Design, University Center, 63 Fifth Ave., room L105 (lower level). Free and open to the public. Two caricaturists dominate the emerging field of the French comic strip from the 1830s onward: the Genevan Rodolphe Töpffer and the Parisian Cham (pseud. Count Amédée de Noé). The undisputed father of the modern comic strip or graphic novel, Töpffer always pretended to denigrate his “little follies,” as he called them, among other disparaging terms, and which he executed in spare corners of his life as director of a boys’ school and university professor. Cham, by contrast, inspired by and at one point collaborator with the Swiss, quickly became a dominant figure in the French premier magazine of graphic satire, Le Charivari. He engaged full-time in all the major caricature formats then practiced, including close to 40 comic strips or graphic novelettes, published in albums and magazine instalments. They represent a fine contrast in their lives, graphic style and satirical reach. David Sandlin: Hold Back the Rushing Waters, Make the Wind Lie Still The 167th meeting of the NY Comics & Picture-story Symposium will be held on Wednesday, Nov. 2, 2016 at 7pm at Parsons School of Design, University Center, 63 Fifth Ave., room L105 (lower level). Free and open to the public. Artist David Sandlin discusses the influences of country music on his paintings, prints, and comics. Sandlin was born in Belfast, Northern Ireland, in 1956. He currently lives in New York and teaches printmaking, book arts, and illustration at the School of Visual Arts. He has exhibited extensively in the U.S., Europe, Japan, and Australia, and his comics and illustrations have appeared in The Best American Comics 2015, 2012 and 2009; The New Yorker; Raw; and other publications. He has received fellowships and grants from the Guggenheim Foundation, the New York Public Library’s Cullman Center for Scholars and Writers, the New York Foundation of the Arts, the Swann Foundation for Caricature and Cartoon, and other institutions. David Kunzle on Chesucristo. The fusion in word and image of Che Guevara and Jesus Christ: the poetry The 166th meeting of the NY Comics & Picture-story Symposium will be held on Tuesday, Nov. 1, 2016 at 7pm at Parsons School of Design, University Center, 63 Fifth Ave., room L105 (lower level). Free and open to the public. Amid the manifold means by which this fusion was made, in narratives of the life of Ernesto Che Guevara, in word and in image, the poetry stands out, likening Che to Jesus in various moments of Jesus’ life and especially death. In the substance and words of various actions recorded in the Gospels parallels are drawn to Che’s sacrificiality; to his embodiment of the creative forces of a “divine”nature; to his omnipresence post-mortem, even his (spiritual) omnipotence. Extracts from the poetry are intoned simultaneously with projection of some of the infinite variations made of the famous, so often christified visage of Che. Based on Kunzle’s recent book, Chesucristo, The Fusion in Word and Image of Che Guevara and Jesus Christ. ————————————————————————————————— A Friend’s Pregnancy Julia Wertz has a piece at the New Yorker’s Culture Desk. ————————————————————————————————— Drawing the Unspeakable The Cultural Services of the French Embassy and the French Comics Association join Comics@Columbia to present a conversation with French cartoonists Kerascoët, Pénélope Bagieu and Catherine Meurisse, discussing the challenges of conveying powerful emotions in a medium often wrongly dismissed as trivial. This event, moderated by cartoonist Kriota Willberg, is part of the FRENCH COMICS FRAMED festival. November 1, 2016, 7–9:30pm, Butler Library, 535 W. 114 St., NYC ————————————————————————————————— Mould Map 6 Texts More info from the recently concluded TERRAFORMERS exhibition: Prison Abolition + Utopianism + Science Fiction by Miranda Iossifidis Exhibition Guide Text Map ————————————————————————————————— Happening Under Your Nose Eleri Harris and Jess Parker look at the largest prison strike in US history, over at the Nib. ————————————————————————————————— MICE 2016 Kurt Ankeny was at the Massachusetts Independent Comics Expo this past weekend, and wrote about it, here: MICE consistently packs in a widely varied crowd, full of people from every age group and background. Part of this is the fact that it is held in Cambridge, Massachusetts, which has one of the most highly educated and diverse citizenries in the nation (it’s home to both Harvard and MIT.) But MICE just has some magic about it. The show has been steadily growing over the past few years. Last year, they broke the 3,000 attendee mark for the first time, and preliminary figures for this past Saturday’s attendance were over 1600, so they seem on par to keep that streak going. People are there to immerse themselves in the comics culture, and to buy, which is always helpful. Share this page: [...]

04/07/2016

Posted on April 7, 2016April 8, 2016 by Harrison

For April 7 News and insights; Cameron has visions of cats on top of beats, comics about haircuts and squirrels, and artists you should know.

—————————————————————————————————

RVA (RICHMOND,VIRGINIA) SHOUT OUT! ? ? ? ? ?

Cameron here, this time I’d like to shout out a RVA artist who’s been killin’ the game for some time now, Chris Visions. I’m not citing a back story other than that he was born to be a great artist. From doing covers for Marvel and DC to having a full series of his own, written by Chris Sabela; Dead Letters, I advise you to check it out like right now!

There are infinitely great things I can say about Chris so I’ll keep this short. This dude’s Illustration work is marvelous; the shapes create striking figures with unforgettable poses. He knows how to really put a story to each of the characters he draws/paints. Man, all I can say about his comic pages is CHECK THEM OUT! Seriously, go see them. You’ll see how great they are. Last but surely not least this man’s portfolio is filled with more colorful, striking, masterful pieces then anyone could did, Ya Dig?!

Here’s a link to his website, AND if any of ya’ll are at Emerald City Comic Con this weekend, go see him at TABLE X-01!

He makes rad videos too:

EVERY WEEK I’m going to try and feature an RVA artist. I won’t be able to feature EVERYONE, but here and there I’ll mention some great people!

12919790_10156659390160251_4810349017351281928_n — Ron Wimberly – Prince of Cats

ATTENTION ATTENTION! ? ? ? ? ? ?

If you haven’t heard, Ronald Wimberly’s PRINCE OF CATS WILL BE GETTING A REPRINT BY IMAGE COMICS. If you don’t know who Ron Wimberly is then let me fill you in. He is a kick ass, bad ass, comic artist who constantly puts out beautiful pieces one after the other. He also has an updated comic on STELA called GratNin! Check it out on your cellular devices.

12919812_10156659390165251_5180080975712734556_n — Ron Wimberly – GratNin

Here’s a link to his Tumblr so you can follow and support a great comic artist!

MUSIC MUSIC MUSIC!

FAT BEATS since 1994. I wont say much, go listen for yourself.

Marvelous beats for the everyday grind.

Comics are for EVERYONE!

—————————————————————————————————

tumblr_o546opkJQA1rzbt9wo1_1280 — Page 34 *In Pieces: Someplace Which I Call Home*

Home

Kurt Ankeny’s latest update to his series In Pieces: Someplace Which I Call Home is on ComicsWorkbook. The sharp marks for pupils, eye glasses, and flesh against the softer graphite borders create an inviting contrast. More so, Kurt’s script works as the consistent foreground for his narration throughout the series.

Pre Order Some Copies

Read from the beginning

—————————————————————————————————

Cd1nV4jUMAAc5wz — CREED (2015) DoP: Maryse Alberti | Dir: Ryan Coogler

Buddies

Filmmakers Charles Huettner and Sean Buckelew of L8Night WorkClub have a movie discussion/animation art talk podcast called Movie Buddies. This episode they rightfully gushed over Ryan Coogler’s second movie Creed with fellow filmmaker Brian Smee. In the second half of the show I asked them who some of their favorite black artists were and they gave some good answers that others should check out.

Listen Here

—————————————————————————————————

tumblr_nzrjnuS78M1r4m362o3_500 — Kimball Anderson

it’s
the vestiges of
my
“career”
that I should abandon anyway

Kimball Anderson ? (Not a squirrel but close)

—————————————————————————————————

Sticks and Stones

Share this page:

Comics Workbook

An online magazine for comics makers

Posted in NewsTagged Chris Visions, Daily News, Kurt Ankeny, ron wimberly

Harrison

Posted on April 7, 2016April 8, 2016

Explore

Bill Boichel on Captain America

Bill BoichelJuly 16, 2016EssaysShare this page: [...]

New Waves in Latin American Comics: Colombia

Juan FernándezAugust 24, 2016los Cómics / Scene ReportsThis guest post comes to us from Laura Andrea Garzón Garavito in Colombia Every time I walk into a bookstore I try to check for the comics and graphic novel section. It might not be surprising given that in countries with a comic strip tradition, like the United States or France, there are bookstores entirely devoted to selling such products. In Latin America, places like Mexico and Argentina have given comics an important space among other literature, having both been large scale national creators and international translators of comics. Nevertheless, in many other Latin American countries comics and graphic novels are only just starting to be of common interest for publishers. Take Colombia, for example. Until not long ago, you could only find translations from mainstream comics, such as superhero ones by Marvel or DC, magazines brought from the above mentioned Mexico or Argentina, and sections in the newspaper devoted to translations of comics such as Calvin and Hobbes or Mafalda (an argentinian political cartoon icon). But there was not much regarding local production in Colombia. Until now. These days, in 2016, as I find so many new books, I feel glad this medium has started to find increased interest among readers. And since we have been building our very own national comics tradition, we have been looking to be eclectic in our selections. I find it interesting that the bookstores that have invested in bringing comics closer to the audience in Colombia, which is my case, have chosen authors with alternative works, who do not necessarily respond to the mainstream view of what comics “are”. That might be because this audience is still forming a definition of what comics can be and their readers enter this universe new eyes. In each comic book club I have been in, I have heard the speakers trying to broaden the perspectives of what such a medium can offer, and the relation that it has with other arts, like film, literature, poetry, painting, etc… An important part of expanding the national understanding of the many forms that comics take to have Maus in a shop window, side by side with El Eternauta, but is not enough. You might laugh at that, since Maus has been circulating for so long it seems impossible not have bumped into it. But I often think we are, in our very own parallel reality, in a point, similar to the one Spiegelman found himself when winning the pulitzer prize in 1992: where should we place this type of creations? where do we sell these works? Gary Groth, editor of Fantagraphics, publisher and critic, said in a conference held in Bogotá last year, he felt Colombia’s panorama looked pretty similar to the one he had seen in the United States in the 80’s, which was a time for alternate exploration of both markets and formats. That means thinking comics through various lenses, thinking audiences can be broader than imagined, not only kids or old-time series followers, but a whole spectrum of different ages, backgrounds, genders, and so on. In this scenario, underground comix hadn’t even seen Maus yet! Just like it happened here! For a long time creators, fans and editors had to research their sources for comics elsewhere, either traveling or ordering books, or maybe being able to find some online version of them. That network has enabled relationships between latin american authors in different regions. Communication through the internet has been a way of supplying for the gatherings: it has built a new kindof dialogue around the comics world. It has also made it possible to think of self-publishing in a different way. Circulation for your work has not been limited solely to printed fanzines but also from web-comics. What we have been seeing in Colombia has been a period of transition in which the alternatives avenues for creativity intertwine, giving artists chances of mixing them and creating hybrid works. However, the fact that the definition of what comics are and what they can do is a definition in construction means that the medium is till fight for legitimization. A fight to make comics be seem as a viable medium, not classified as secondary, as less than other types of narrative forms, or framed as for only some type of audiences (by editorials or entities in charge of financing new authors and their projects). It also means that there is a fight to find assure that there are market willings to support the production of comic books in Latin America. The very idea of trusting that this kind of publishing can be supported on a national level may be difficult from country to country. What might be easy for Brazil can be difficult in Peru or Colombia. Now, relations between Latin American countries can help to understand there is indeed viable market for comic books, but, according to Colombian comics critic, script writer and comics editor, Pablo Guerra, Latin America has always been an island in editorial terms. That’s to say Latin American countries have found it difficult to establish connections (even when it comes to traditional forms of literature) between themselves to develop strategies for mutual support, so they do not continue to be regarded as an appendix of Spain, as is done in other international contexts. On the bright side of such situation Daniel Jiménez (editor, cultural manager and director of the colombian comics festival Entreviñetas) notes that there is a healthy situation in the panaroma of Colombian comics: a new generation of cartoonists under 35 years of age. They are a group of hungry creators with a network of interesting cultural and artistic production in the comics medium. They understand that they need to be in dialogue with other cultural traditions, perspectives and tendencies happening in other places around both Latin America and the world. They are critical, they question their reality, they aim to create a dialogue through their work. Latin American artists work in and from the interstitial space between center and periphery, and that is reflected in their production. The fact that there is a young generation also makes it possible for relations around this new forms of making comics to be fresh and non-hierarchical. The idea is that among this demagraphic, it doesn’t matter where you come from but rather what you do and how you do it in comics, along with how you participate of the new channels of distribution. Here is a list of recommendations and highlights of the contemporary Latin American comics situation (Special thanks to Kelly Moctezuma, a young artist, editor and comics curator, for helping me out with this last section so you, dear reader, can enjoy the best of what we’ve got to offer): Hands up for the editorials publishing comic books and graphic novels. Graphic novels might be a difficult format for new readers, as a broad part of Latin American audience can be, as well as an expensive one, but editorials have found their way around this problem: Rey Naranjo and the recently launched Cohete Comics, part of Laguna Libros, and La Silueta in Colombia, Contracultura and Pictorama in Perú, Catalonia in Chile, La Ñatita in Bolivia, MINO in Brazil. Some kick-ass girls worth watching for that still struggle to make a living out of this like PowerPaola, Delius, Sole Otero, Isol, Inechi, Maco, Marcela Trujillo, No Sofía, María Luque, CatalinaBu, Juana Medina. Now some boys worth checking out (I mean, their work) like Luis Echavarría, Fabio Zimbres, Rodrigo de la Hoz, Camilo Aguirre, Henry Díaz, Alejandro Henao, Antolín Olguiatti, Jim Pluk, Joni b, Truchafrita, Pedro Mancini, Jesús Cossio, Marco Tóxico, Eduardo Yaguas. Publications that have (or had) underlined comics in Latin America are alive and growing: Revista Larva, Carboncito, Entreviñetas (which is a section in the national colombian newspaper El Espectador), Dr. Fausto, Graffiti 76% quadrinhos, Gringo Muerto. – Laura Andrea Garzón Garavito Share this page: [...]

06/05/2017

Caleb OrecchioJune 4, 2017NewsCaleb Orecchio here with thoughts on recently read comics by Mickey Z, Matthew Thurber, and Jillian Tamaki, and enough links to make a cat bark. ————————————————————————————————— Below are some thoughts on some recent comics I’ve read. Three very different comics by three very different cartoonists. Mostly, I’ve been thinking about how people draw so that is reflected herein. RAV 2nd Collection by Mickey Zacchilli (Youth in Decline)–buy it here As is always the case with a Mickey Z comic, 2nd Collection is hilarious. She shares comedic DNA with Rumiko Takahashi. Often it is the aside remarks and the contrast of character personalities that take you off guard and make you laugh out loud. Michael DeForge writes in the introduction, “Mickey’s comics always feel as though they’re about to come apart at the seams, but they never do.” This is true on many levels. First, my copy of RAV 1st Collection is literally falling apart at the seams of the binding (when I talked to Youth in Decline proprietor, Ryan Sands, at CXC 2016 he assured me this would be less likely to happen for the 2nd Collection. So far so good!) Second, Mickey’s drawings are thin, scratchy and chaotic, she uses the digital gray zippatone effect to strengthen and hold up her loose drawings. The gray layer allows for the drawings to keep their first-take raw energy and act as the concrete for the scaffolding—the lines. The product of such an alchemy that is unabashedly manic and energized. I imagine sparks flying off her pen when she draws, and her hair standing on end due to the effect—like Goku going super-saiyan or something. Art Comic #1-5 by Matthew Thurber (Swimmers Group)–buy issues here Art Comic is a satirical fairytale of contemporary art. Thurber is achingly smart. Every comic he’s done—including this one—are just filled to the brim with intelligence and rarely unparalleled whit that harmoniously blends with his traditionally-minded cartooning to make an intellectual’s dream comic. Thurber’s drawings feel like actual drawings rather than “inked drawings.” There is almost no embellishment to his lines which creates an intimacy many comics lack (Noah Van Sciver is another cartoonist who I think fits this bill). To me, having embellished inking, digital color, etc., can be like adding a drum kit to a band—everything else has to be turned up and some of the camaraderie between performer and audience is lost. I’m not trying to put down any other way of cartooning or music—Highway 61 Revisited is one of my favorite albums; but Thurber, as a cartoonist, is the lone musician on the stage singing to his attentive and perceptive audience. Simple chord changes and finger picking, with astute, biting lyrics allows us to listen and think. Boundless by Jillian Tamaki (Drawn & Quarterly)–buy it here You may know her from many things. Most notably, you may know her from Caldecott Honor winning graphic novel she drew in collaboration with her cousin Mariko Tamaki, This One Summer. A skill, I think that is underrated these days is the ability to be just the drawer AND the author—and the part that goes under appreciated is the ability to do both very well. I’m trying to keep this post brief so I’ll get to the point, Tamaki’s drawing is among the best in the business among or better than such cartoonists as David Mazzuchelli, Connor Willumson, Jaime Hernandez–you name ’em! I am especially taken with what I call her “children’s book” style of drawing. Strings of squiggles and shifty lines come together in perfect harmony to create simple, plump people, animals and plants that seemed to be ripped right out of my childhood subconscious. At first the drawing reminded me of Sendak—Little Bear specifically—but less stiff. Then I think more and I think of all the little drawings and illustrations I saw in old kid’s nature magazines, craft magazines, story book anthologies, songbooks, etc. I guess what I’m trying to say is that this children’s book drawing style feels new, old, elusive, and familiar at the same time, and I’m left baffled by Tamaki’s prowess of craft. ————————————————————————————————— if you don’t know, now you know Whoa! NY Times does a “New York Issue” as an all-comics issue where cartoonists collaborate with NY Times reporters that you can read online here. I’m personally most excited about the Mazzuchelli strip! Noah Van Sciver has an interview over at Fumettologica on the occasion of his book, Disquiet, being published in Italy by Coconino Press. Please read this particularly good strip by Noah, featuring Simon Hanselmann! John Porcellino has an interview on Study Group’s Process Party. Chris Ware writes about Saul Steinberg’s drawing over at The New York Review of Books. Paste Magazine has a preview of the upcoming Street Angel book. Two days after Drawn & Quarterly announced that they were publishing Berliac’s graphic novel Sadbøi, the publisher took it off their publishing schedule and issued “An Apology” amid an escalating hullabaloo. The Comics Beat has more of the story. Berliac’s own statements were posted on his Facebook. Comic Book Resources reveals Matthew Thurber’s cover for the next Best American Comics. Happy to see Ben Katchor is the editor! Should be interesting. Jason Wood interviews Andrew MacLean over on 11 O’Clock Comics. MacLean and his Head Lopper series is a favorite among my pals here in Dayton. Finally, Heroes Con looks to be a good show this year with some great guests. ————————————————————————————————— Suzy and Cecil – 6-5-2017 – by Gabriella Tito ————————————————————————————————— Joanie and Jordie – 6-5-2017 – by Caleb Orecchio Share this page: [...]

03/17/2017

Sally IngrahamMarch 17, 2017NewsSally Ingraham here to finish your week with Alison Bechdel, Iona Fox, Sally Cantrino, the Women In Comics Collective, and more! ————————————————————————————————— Keep an eye out for new Dykes To Watch Out For strips from Alison Bechdel! After drawing them continually from 1983 to 2008, she now makes new ones when inspiration strikes – which it did this week, along with the “Ides of Trump” campaign. See the rest of the strip above at Seven Days – HERE. ————————————————————————————————— The Women in Comics Collective has a show up at the Grace Gallery in Namm Hall at the New York City College of Technology in Downtown Brooklyn from March 16th – April 20th. The show was curated by Sara Woolley and includes artwork by these rad ladies (@etc. are all Instagram handles, FYI – look them up!): Laura Alvarez @bigeyesworld, Lara Antal @sowhatpress, Selina Briggs @thejellyempire, Marguerite Dabaie @mdabaie, Micheline Hess @gamera2000, Janet Lee @dapper_janet, Alice Meichi Li @alicemeichi, Ellen Lindner @ellenlinda, Alitha Martinez @ariotstorm, Paige Pumphrey @paigey_pumphrey, Regine Sawyer @rslockettdown (panel discussion moderator & exhibitor) and Dr. Shamika Mitchell @blackbootie (panel discussion moderator) The Women in Comics Collective “(WinC for short- Pronounced Wink), is an Artistic and Informative Initiative that began in May of 2012. It serves to educate communities about the role and merit of Women working in the Comic Book/Multimedia industries as well as highlight the importance of Literacy through Comic Books.” They do a lot of outreach through panels and workshops, and a traveling art exhibition. Learn more about them HERE. Check out the Women in Comics Con on March 25th at The Bronx Library Center – more details HERE and Facebook event details HERE. ————————————————————————————————— Adam Griffiths interviewed Sally Cantrino for his latest Zine Tree. They talk about how music plays a roll in Sally’s storytelling. “I pretty much always build a playlist or end up with one specific song/album attached in my head to whatever comic I’m working on, The starting point for a lot of my comics is “I was listening to a song and it reminded me of/made me feel like…” and building from there. For Mysteries in particular I wanted to express the intense emotional experiences and catharsis I’ve had involving music, especially at live shows – feeling completely in a moment to the point where time and space don’t matter, where you’re just overwhelmed with love and joy or sorrow or whatever emotion is being evoked in the song, or with dancing or moshing or keeping your head above the crowd, sharing that experience with your closest friend or total strangers. Or how songs or albums get associated with specific experiences and places and times in your life, that big swell of emotion and longing that you feel.“ Read the rest of the interview HERE! ————————————————————————————————— The A.V. Club released a list of 10 Female Cartoonists You Need To Know. Composed by Zainab Akhtar (of Comics and Cola) it recognizes the work of folks like Mickey Z – whose Instagram comic Space Academy 123 (above) is currently my favorite thing online – and Vanesa R. Del Rey, Laura Park, and Aphton Corbin among others. Zainab’s comments on why such lists are still needed ring 100% true. “On the one hand, it’s absolutely strange to continue to have “women in X field” features when women make up more than half the world’s population, and sure, it’d be nice to be beyond the engagement of these reductive stances. On the other hand, we’re not even close to parity, and lists like this can be very effective in quickly introducing work that’s overlooked. So, yes, these are all female artists, but these are all excellent artists, full stop. Here’s a selection of artists who you may not be as familiar with, but who are producing interesting and brilliant work—work that is resonating within the medium and with audiences. And that’s what we aim to recognize and celebrate.“ Check out the whole list HERE. ————————————————————————————————— The Vermont Folk Life Center has shared their project The Most Costly Journey (in Spanish, El viaje más caro). It is “an ethnographic cartooning project that employs collaborative storytelling as a tool to mitigate loneliness, isolation, and despair among Latin American migrant farm workers on Vermont dairy farms.” Learn more about it HERE. Among the 8 contributing cartoonists are Tillie Walden, and Iona Fox (whose story is pictured above). ————————————————————————————————— P. S. Paste Magazine interviews Liz Prince and Amanda Kirk about their comic Coady and the Creepies – the latest “girl-band” romp, coming out from Boom! Studios – more HERE. Katie Skelly on Eleanor Davis‘ Libby’s Dad – for The Comics Journal. ————————————————————————————————— The Spring Semester of the Santoro Correspondence Course for Comic Book Makers is upon us – rolling start date – just apply! The course is 8 weeks long – 500 bux – payment plans are available. More details can be found HERE – or email santoroschoolATgmail. Not ready to commit to an 8 week course but still want to put some thought towards making comics or leveling up your skill set? Check out thee Santoro School Handbook – 16 pages of comics-making gold! ————————————————————————————————— Blinkers – 3-17-2017 – by Jack Brougham ————————————————————————————————— Suzy and Cecil – 3-17-2017 – by Gabriella Tito ————————————————————————————————— Joanie and Jordie – 3-17-2017 – by Caleb Orecchio Share this page: [...]

05/03/2017

Juan FernándezMay 3, 2017los Cómics / NewsEmpezamos el día con unlocalizador de residencias; Liniers y Julieta Botto; Los Premios Eisner; Acción Cultural Española; Power Paola y Serge Bloch; Vanesa R. Del Rey; La Política Retratada; Alfonso Zapico y los tebeos de Comics Workbook. ————————————————————————————————— Localizart.es Infórmate sobre las residencias artísticas a las que puedes optar en Europa y América Latina como creador de cómics. Puedes utilizar el localizador de residencias y espacios para la producción artística en América Latina AQUI. ————————————————————————————————— En un intercambio más que entretenido, Liniers conversa sobre cómics, literatura y sobre su propia editorial, la editorial común con Julieta Botto: JB -Tu proyecto editorial es de cómic, pero, a la vez, pareciera que se acerca más al de libro de arte. ¿Cómo definirías a La editorial común? L -A La editorial común no la veo como de libros de arte, la veo como de libros de cómic. Es una editorial de novelas gráficas, si se quiere, y de algunos libros de humor gráfico, pero eso es del mundo del cómic. La razón por la que comenzamos con esta editorial es porque la Argentina es una especie de usina muy gigantesca y muy poderosa de artistas dentro del mundo de la historieta, y muchas veces veía que libros de autores argentinos se publicaban en Europa, se publicaban en los Estados Unidos y no se publicaban en la Argentina. Es como si los discos de Calamaro o las películas de Darín no se vieran en la Argentina, me parece que estamos cometiendo un error cultural. Así que la idea de La editorial común fue usar Macanudo, que sabemos que es un libro que se vende, para bancar, por ahí, libros que son más difíciles de vender, pero que son mucho mejores que Macanudo. Y para encontrar ese tipo de material, buscar autores nuevos en América Latina. Traer libros de afuera que ayuden a abrir la cabeza al público argentino. Esa es un poco la idea. Léela AQUI! ————————————————————————————————— Cómics y noticias que me han llamado la atención esta semana: Los Premios Eisner colocan siete obras con firma española entre lo mejor del tebeo. Paco Roca, Emma Ríos y Albert Monteys entre otros! Atención autores españoles de cómic: Acción Cultural Española convoca a su residencia de novela gráfica en Angouleme. Un diálogo dibujado por Power Paola con Serge Bloch para Revista Arcadia. Vanesa R. Del Rey tiene 3 obras increibles en el Line Art show de Gallery Nucleus. Por supuesto, estan en venta! No os perdáis esta exposición, La Política Retratada, que repasa la relación humor gráfico y política a través de 200 viñetas en el Palau Robert Barcelona si estas de visita! Reseña de la segunda entrega de La Balada del Norte de Alfonso Zapico en 13 Millones de Naves. Otro logro gráfico-histórico! Ya podéis ver la entrevista completa que le hizo Carlos Reyes a Carla Berrocal en la Plop Galería durante mi estancia en Santiago. El programa se grabó el 28 de marzo en Plop Galería, Santiago de Chile. ————————————————————————————————— Suzy and Cecil – 5-3-2017 – by Sally Ingraham ————————————————————————————————— Joanie and Jordie – 5-3-2017 – by Caleb Orecchio Share this page: [...]

Leave a Reply Cancel reply